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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28566327">Extra Credit</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/theartsaremypassion/pseuds/theartsaremypassion'>theartsaremypassion</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Degrassi the Next Generation</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>F/M</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-05</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 03:41:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,805</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28566327</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/theartsaremypassion/pseuds/theartsaremypassion</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>J.T. needs extra credit to keep from failing English and joining the school newspaper team is his only option of hope. One obstacle stood in his way, though - the overbearing school newspaper's editor: Liberty Van Zandt</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Liberty Van Zandt/J.T. Yorke</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Extra Credit</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi so this blurb ACTUALLY sucks this time mainly because I wrote it in two sittings and um... yeah it just sucks and is supposed to be more along the lines of cute I guess... also it takes place in season 2... I hope you guys like it but if it sucks - don't say I didn't warn you</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>“If you keep up this poor track record, you <em> will </em> fail my class, J.T.” </p>
<p>Mrs. Kwan’s words rang in J.T.’s rather empty head as she made her way down the rows, passing back the latest unit test the class just took. His heart begun to beat louder and louder as he heard another paper hit a desk, his fate in her delicate little hands. </p>
<p>“You alright, dude? You look like you just saw your grandma naked,” Toby points out, observing J.T.’s stuck expression. </p>
<p>“No, I’m not alright! Look, if I fail this test I’m done – gone for. I’ll never live to see boobs in real life,” J.T. sighs, putting his head in his hands as Mrs. Kwan’s footsteps approach his row. </p>
<p>“Nice work as always, Toby,” Mrs. Kwan says, lightly putting his flawless paper on his desk.  </p>
<p>Mrs. Kwan lets out a deep sigh as she proceeds toward J.T.’s desk, the result not looking good. “I can’t say the same for you, Mr. Yorke.” </p>
<p>J.T. peers through his hands to look at the paper on his desk, his hands shaking and pulse racing. He groans when he sees the big fat F on it, the red ink making it even more menacing than it already is. The bell rings all too soon to allow J.T. to wallow in his thoughts of defeat.  </p>
<p>He is screwed. </p>
<p>He quickly scurries up to Mrs. Kwan’s desk as she prepares it for the next class, her mind already on the subject matter for next period.  </p>
<p>“Mrs. Kwan, please! You’ve got to help me here. Isn’t there any extra credit you can offer me?” J.T. pleads, his test already crumbled up at the bottom of his book bag. </p>
<p>“I’m sorry, Mr. Yorke. I’m afraid there’s no other opportunities I can give you to improve your outcome,” she replies, turning her back to write on the board. </p>
<p>“Please, Mrs. Kwan! I can’t fail this class. My grandma said if I fail another class, she’ll send me to some lame-o prep school. You can’t let her do that to me!” </p>
<p>Before Mrs. Kwan can respond, Liberty Van Zandt waltzes in, a stack of papers in her hand. “Here you go, Mrs. Kwan. One peer-reviewed copy of the Grapevine.” </p>
<p>“Thank you, Liberty. I appreciate your timeliness each and every time.” Mrs. Kwan smiles and sets the newspaper down before J.T. swears he can see her smile turn into an almost <em> evil </em> smirk. </p>
<p>“You know, J.T., the student newspaper could use some more staff,” she says, slowly crossing her thin arms. </p>
<p>“Me? Working for free? Sorry, Mrs. Kwan, I would need something in return,” J.T. replies, completely missing the point.  </p>
<p>Mrs. Kwan rolls her eyes in disbelief of J.T. missing what she is trying to put down. “You won’t be working for free. You’ll be working for extra credit.” </p>
<p>J.T. opens his mouth in realization, but quickly closes it when he realizes the implications. He would be having to work with Liberty, his serial stalker since last year. That is worse than failing the class, way, way worse. </p>
<p>“Are you sure there isn’t any <em> other </em> opportunities? Preferably where I could work alone?” </p>
<p>Mrs. Kwan quickly shakes her head, tapping her index finger on her arm. “Nope. This is your only option. Take it or leave it.” </p>
<p>J.T. begrudgingly sighs, not wanting to have to agree to such awful terms for one lousy class. But alas, failing just isn’t an option for him, not without consequences, at least. He soon is faced to swallow his pride, turning toward Liberty one last time to wonder if it is really worth it. </p>
<p>Going to a prep school may not be so bad... However, the prep school likely would not have another Paige Michalchuck, and J.T. couldn’t quite pass up on a magnificent creature like that. No, that just wouldn’t do. </p>
<p>He finally turns to Mrs. Kwan, a pained smile on his face. “I’ll do it.” </p>
<p>“Excellent. Liberty, how would you feel about showing him to his new home for the next two weeks?” </p>
<p>Liberty immediately goes to be by his side, interlocking her arm with his as a sign of her excitement. “I’d be honored, Mrs. Kwan.” </p>
<p>
  <em>Great.</em>
</p>
<p>Liberty soon pulls J.T. along to the magical media immersion room, ready to begin her work with her man by her side.  </p>
<p>~~~ </p>
<p>Two days. It’s been two days and J.T. already hates what he’s agreed to. Liberty has already made him interview the chess club <em> three </em> times for her upcoming story, J.T.’s pride causing him to not complete the task the first time around. </p>
<p>“Why, Mrs. Kwan would <em> hate </em> to hear of your failure,” she said, reviewing J.T.’s empty notepad. </p>
<p>“You wouldn’t...” </p>
<p>“Oh, but I would. I may like you, J.T., but the school newspaper always comes first. It’s my duty to accurately give this school the news it deserves.” </p>
<p>J.T. made a b-line straight to the chess club shortly after that conversation, the cackling of the nerds sending chills down his spine. </p>
<p>This time around, J.T. had a somewhat full story, enough to where Liberty could work with it.  </p>
<p>Liberty nods as she reviews what he’s written, impressed that he actually spelled the members’ names right. “I’m impressed, J.T. This should do just great on next week’s issue.”  </p>
<p>She then turns around to place his notes in a manila folder, J.T.’s name already written on the thing.  </p>
<p>J.T. quickly whips his head around as he smells sweet, sweet perfume in the air, the scent only belonging to one human in the whole school.  </p>
<p>
  <em>Paige Michalchuk. </em>
</p>
<p>She’s walking southbound of where J.T. is standing, her posse of friends making a human shield around her. They all have their pom pom’s in hand, presumably making their way to cheer practice. </p>
<p>That’s when J.T. has a great idea, an idea so great that it nearly tickles him with how genius it is.  </p>
<p>“Hey, Liberty,” he calls. </p>
<p>She snaps her head up all too quickly, the air that she produces enough to cool J.T. down.  </p>
<p>“I have an idea for the school newspaper,” he starts, readjusting his stance to appear more confident.  </p>
<p>“I’m all ears,” she replies, stepping around the desk to be closer to him. </p>
<p>This move causes J.T. to back up a little, Liberty’s close presence not welcome to him. “We should interview the cheer squad for the advice column.” </p>
<p>“Why?” </p>
<p>“Because <em> everyone </em> would take their advice. It’d really boost our turn out, you know.” </p>
<p>Liberty crosses her arms and furrows her brows, hating the idea. “That’s not a great idea. Not everyone wants to be like them and they’re not licensed to give credible advice.” </p>
<p>J.T. inwardly groans as he realizes he’s losing the argument. This is his one big chance to really impress Paige and <em> Liberty </em> doesn’t want him to be great. Typical. </p>
<p>“Okay how about uh...” Liberty tilts her head in anticipation of what J.T. will say next. “How about uh... stereotypes! We could do a column about how stereotypes are harmful... specifically to the cheerleading population.” </p>
<p>Liberty untenses her body as she realizes it’s actually a credible idea, one that sounded like something she’d come up with.  </p>
<p>After a long staring battle (Liberty loses), Liberty finally clicks her tongue and throws her hands up, signaling her defeat. “Fine, Yorke. We’ll do it.” </p>
<p>J.T. loudly exclaims, throwing his bony arms up in victory.  </p>
<p>“<em>But</em>... your interview questions ultimately have to be cleared by me. No silly business.” </p>
<p>“Yeah, yeah, yeah. But first I’m off to do some research!” J.T. exclaims, scurrying out of the classroom. </p>
<p>This is his best idea, yet. </p>
<p>~~~ </p>
<p>J.T. watches in awe as the cheerleaders warm up, their flexible bodies displaying some of the most beautiful shapes known to a teenage boy. His perverted looks quickly earn him a glare from Hazel, with Paige turning around to see what she is glaring at. </p>
<p>“This is a closed practice, fetus,” Paige states, stretching her arms behind her head. </p>
<p>J.T. snaps out of his daze and steps closer to her, his pen and notepad in hand. “No, no. I’m here with the school newspaper. We’re doing a column on stereotypes...and how they can be harmful.” </p>
<p>Paige scoffs, stepping closer to J.T. “Hun, they’ve been anything <em> but </em> harmful.” </p>
<p>J.T. begins to sweat. He’s losing the battle. “You don’t want to set the record straight that not all cheerleaders are hot airheads that dress really well?” </p>
<p>Paige squints her eyes and mocks a hit to J.T.’s face, causing J.T. to flinch at the sudden movement.  </p>
<p>“Wait. He’s got a point,” Manny speaks up. “He may be here for all the wrong reasons, but I think the column could really clear the stereotypes about us.” </p>
<p>“I actually kind of agree...” Hazel trails. </p>
<p>Paige looks from Hazel to Manny to Hazel again, unsure of who to blow up on first. Alas, she doesn’t, and regains her composure before turning back around to face the fetus. </p>
<p>“Fine. We’ll do the column,” she relents, crossing her arms. “But one wrong word and you’ll be dead meat, got it?” </p>
<p>“Got it.” </p>
<p>~~~ </p>
<p>J.T. waits with bated breath as Liberty looks over his final copy of the interview, her expression unreadable. It had taken the rest of last week to get his questions approved by Liberty, with most of them initially being along the lines of what kind of guy they could see themselves with or who was the best kisser. He eventually crosses that hurdle, though, which Liberty couldn’t believe.  </p>
<p>It is now Wednesday of the next school week, making it a little over one whole week since he’d started this whole ordeal. He has to admit – working with Liberty so closely isn’t all that bad, as long as she didn’t start to be weird, which admittedly was quite often. However, when Liberty wasn’t being weird, J.T. actually thought she had the potential to be kind of cool, which is a fact he’d swear he never said if asked about it. </p>
<p>Finally, Liberty smiles before putting the paper on her desk next to all of the other final copies. “Nice work, J.T. I’m actually quite impressed you made such a cohesive article.” </p>
<p>J.T. dramatically bows, accepting all of the praise Liberty has to offer him. “Thank you, thank you. Just another Yorke masterpiece.” </p>
<p>Liberty staples the final copy to the others, making the whole thing into a booklet. “Alright, all there’s left to do now is to get this final version to Mrs. Kwan so she can ultimately approve it.” </p>
<p>“I’ll take it to her,” J.T. offers, reaching for the copy.  </p>
<p>Just as J.T. tries to reach for it, his ankle nips the corner of the desk, causing both himself and Liberty to go crashing down to the floor.  </p>
<p>“Hey, do you guys know where -” Spinner’s voice is cut off as he realizes the site in front of him. </p>
<p>It takes a second for J.T. to register that he is on top of Liberty, Spinner’s deep voice further aiding him in realizing this. He quickly gets up, dusting himself off of all the Liberty germs. Liberty, on the other hand, is completely flustered, her cheeks gone red. </p>
<p>“Sorry to ruin your love affair,” Spinner chuckles, enjoying seeing J.T. writhe in discomfort.  </p>
<p>“It is <em> not </em> what it looks like,” J.T. assures, readjusting his shirt. </p>
<p>“Sure, it isn’t. Anyways, have you guys seen Mr. Simpson? I thought he’d be in here by now.” </p>
<p>“Spinner -” </p>
<p>“He stepped out for lunch. He should be back soon,” Liberty answers, her hands poised in front of her. </p>
<p>“Ah, thanks.” </p>
<p>With that, Spinner leaves the room, giving J.T. one last playful look before exiting. When he’s gone, J.T. immediately looks to Liberty, his face red with anger. </p>
<p>“Why didn’t you try to clear up the situation? </p>
<p>“Because nothing happened so there’s nothing to clear up, J.T. Calm down,” she says. </p>
<p>“I swear if my name becomes attached to yours, I’ll -” </p>
<p>“You’ll what? Complain and get yourself kicked out of your only opportunity of passing English?” </p>
<p>J.T. goes dead silent, Liberty having a point.  </p>
<p>“That’s what I thought,” she says, snatching the papers out of J.T.’s hand. “Now, relax. Spinner wouldn’t spread such a rumor without proper information to back his claims.” </p>
<p>
  <em>I wouldn’t be so sure. </em>
</p>
<p>Liberty then walks away, on her way to deliver the final copy to Mrs. Kwan. </p>
<p>~~~ </p>
<p>Hushed whispers. Loud giggles. Discreet finger pointing.  </p>
<p>It all points to J.T.’s worse nightmare – Spinner snitched.  </p>
<p>He doesn’t quite know what’s worse – being laughed at over something that was completely false or having everyone under the impression he’s seeing Liberty of all people. It’s a nightmare, really. A horrible, horrible nightmare that he can’t seem to wake up from. </p>
<p>He barely makes it to the bathroom in peace, the laughter still taunting him as he looked into the mirror. </p>
<p>Toby nearly scares the living daylights out of him as seemingly appears out of nowhere. J.T. jumps, not expecting for him to be behind him. He quickly whips around gripping onto Toby’s shirt. </p>
<p>“You’ve got to help me, man! Everyone thinks Liberty and I... did things together,” he says, gripping even tighter onto Toby’s shirt. </p>
<p>“Well, a rumor is a rumor, my friend. Gossip around here travels fast and is only shot down when the next juicy piece of gossip arises,” Toby responds, pushing past J.T. to wash his hands. </p>
<p>“So, you’re saying I have to wait until Heather Sinclair embarrasses herself again before I get out of this painful loop?” </p>
<p>Toby nods, turning the faucet off. His answer causes J.T. to loudly groan. J.T. just couldn’t let that fly. He couldn’t bear to live the next minute with people thinking he and Liberty are the next hot thing. But what choice does he have? Unless... </p>
<p>J.T. quickly scurries out of the washroom and down the hallway, looking for Paige. He isn’t paying attention to where he’s going and accidentally runs into Paige, nearly causing her to tumble over. </p>
<p>“Easy, Yorke. You going to seduce me like you did Liberty?” she taunts, her sweet, sweet perfume temporarily making J.T. forget the anger he has toward her. </p>
<p>“Enough, Paige. Why’d you spread the rumor? It’s not even true!” </p>
<p>“I didn’t spread it. I only told one person... and then they told someone else... who told someone else... and well, you get it.” </p>
<p>“No, I don’t get it. I’d never go out with Liberty!” J.T. exclaims, trying to clear his already tarnished name. </p>
<p>“Relax, buddy. No one is judging your preference in women,” Spinner laughs, patting him on the shoulder. </p>
<p>Tick tock. J.T. is ready to explode. </p>
<p>“I’d never date someone like Liberty because she’s gross, weird, a stuck-up prude, lame, and annoying! Why can’t everybody understand I’d never date a horrible creature like her?!” </p>
<p>The hallway grows silent as J.T. dramatically tries to catch his breath, all of the things that bothered him most finally off of his chest. As if it’s a scene out of movie, the hallway seemingly parts down the middle to reveal a devastated Liberty, tears welling in her eyes. Before he can say anything, Liberty’s footsteps are the only thing heard in the eerily quiet hallway, her feet presumably leading her to the washroom. </p>
<p>The bell finally rings, breaking the deadly silence. </p>
<p>“Harsh, man,” Spinner says, giving J.T. one last pat on the back before heading off to class.  </p>
<p>J.T. watches as his peers all quickly disperse, leaving him mostly alone to be with his thoughts. </p>
<p>
  <em>Great. </em>
</p>
<p>~~~ </p>
<p>Guilt, the one thing rampant in J.T.’s mind for the past couple of days. Every time Liberty is even remotely in his radius, she somehow finds a way to escape before he can explain himself. He felt kind of bad saying those harsh things in front of everyone, and seeing Liberty hurt oddly made him feel sick. He thought by finally getting her off his case that he’d be relieved, overcome with joy, but instead, he’s guilty beyond measure. </p>
<p>Although he hadn’t even been the one to start the crazy rumor, everyone around him treated him like the enemy, like his words were poison. Even though he didn’t consider himself as popular, he has never witnessed being an outcast such as this before. He hates it. </p>
<p>It’s Friday and while he’s usually happy on such a day, his mind wouldn’t let him rest, the bad turnout of a couple days ago still fresh on his mind. </p>
<p>So, when he sees Liberty sitting alone at lunch, he takes the opportunity to sit by her, to explain that all of this is just one big misunderstanding. </p>
<p>“If this is about your extra credit, I won’t rat you out. I gain nothing from that,” Liberty spat, messing over her food with her fork. </p>
<p>“It’s not about that. I-It's about what I said,” J.T. starts, his appetite replaced by nervousness. </p>
<p>“You meant it, didn’t you? No need to try and take it back, now. It’s not like you haven’t been thinking of that this whole time,” Liberty says, sadness in her voice. </p>
<p>“But I haven’t! I was just... frustrated that a lie was being spread around.” </p>
<p>Liberty scoffs. “Sure. If it was Paige instead of me, you’d be just as frustrated, right?” </p>
<p>J.T. doesn’t know what to say to that, his mouth trying to form words but his lips failing to sound them out every time. </p>
<p>“I don’t have time for this,” Liberty says, picking her tray up to leave. </p>
<p>“Liberty, wait!” J.T. begs, putting his hand on her shoulder. </p>
<p>“Don’t touch me,” Liberty snarls, turning around to look J.T. in the eye one last time before walking off. </p>
<p>J.T. opts to not try and catch up to her, instead hoping the air-conditioned building would give her some time to cool off and recollect. </p>
<p>~~~ </p>
<p>Time eventually passes and the end of the day arrives, with the final bell ringing and signaling J.T.’s freedom for the weekend. </p>
<p>However, his joy for freedom is short-lived as he remembers his situation with Liberty, the situation bringing about guilt in his mind once again.  </p>
<p>He spots Liberty heading out of the main doors and quickly follows behind her, hoping to catch up to her before she gets too far ahead. </p>
<p>“Liberty, wait up!” </p>
<p>She doesn’t listen, however, continuing to make long strides with her equally long legs. </p>
<p>J.T. finally catches up to her though, his ragged breaths tickling Liberty’s ear. “Will you just please let me explain? I didn’t mean for any of this to get this out of hand.” </p>
<p>“What is there to explain, J.T.? You already said how you felt about me,” Liberty replies, her lips returning back to a taut line. </p>
<p>“Look, Liberty. I just said those things to get them off my case, which doesn’t make it okay, but that’s the truth. Honest.” </p>
<p>Liberty abruptly stops walking to turn around and face him, tears in her eyes. “Am I really that horrible? Do you really detest me so much?” </p>
<p>“No, no. You’re not horrible, Liberty,” J.T. says, trying to clear his name. </p>
<p>“Then why do you treat me like this? All the time you’re always talking about me as if I’m the most disgusting person on the planet,” Liberty whispers, a lone tear rolling down her cheek. </p>
<p>J.T. doesn’t dare speak, allowing her to finish whatever is on her mind. </p>
<p>“You know, I saw something special in you underneath that goofy exterior. I thought you had a good heart. I guess I was wrong.” </p>
<p>Just as Liberty goes to turn around, J.T. hugs her, a real, genuine hug. He grips her tight, which at first confuses her. </p>
<p>“What are you doing?” Liberty asks, struggling against the hug. </p>
<p>Ultimately, she calms down, deciding to take her big shot and hug him back. </p>
<p>For once, J.T. doesn’t care that people are staring. He only cares that Liberty knows that he means that he’s truly sorry. </p>
<p>J.T. is the first to pull away, resisting the urge to dust off all the Liberty germs. </p>
<p>“You’re not terrible. You’re actually... really cool. I-I mean you didn’t rat me out, and you could’ve...” J.T. trails, staring down at his feet. </p>
<p>Liberty finally smiles, the smile being the first one she’s shone in the past couple of days. “Thanks.” </p>
<p>“Mind if I walk with you?” J.T. asks, feeling that this is the best way to make it up to her. </p>
<p>“Not at all,” Liberty replies, a little too eagerly. </p>
<p>Together, they walk home, with J.T. even allowing Liberty to rest her arm around his shoulder, although he swats it away after an unbearably long time.  </p>
<p>As... interesting... as Liberty is, J.T. doesn’t think she’s half bad after all, seeing as he didn’t explode from working with her. He actually liked working with her more than he cared to admit, and would never admit this fact to another living soul. </p>
<p>For now, however, he is perfectly fine walking side by side by Liberty, as long as she kept her paws off. </p>
<p>~~~ </p>
<p>“I see you’ve completed the extra credit opportunity satisfactorily,” Mrs. Kwan says, thumbing through the paper work Liberty had signed off on. </p>
<p>J.T. only nods, still nervous to hear his fate. </p>
<p>“Because you’ve done as asked of you with zero hiccups, you will not fail my class. Consider this your lucky day.” </p>
<p>J.T. jumps up and down and loudly shouts, his praises not going unnoticed by the students in the hall. One of these students happen to be Liberty, who gives him a thumbs up through the window. He reciprocates the gesture and runs out to say his final piece to her. </p>
<p>“Thanks. You really saved my butt,” J.T. states, readjusting his cap. </p>
<p>“Don’t mention it,” Liberty smiles. “You <em> do </em> owe me something, though, for being a detestable human being.” </p>
<p>J.T.’s smile drops as he processes Liberty’s words. As much as he didn’t want to do the extra ‘task’, he did owe it to her, considering he was a major jerk.  </p>
<p>“State your claim...” J.T. groans, dramatically throwing his head back. </p>
<p>“Come to the movies with me tomorrow night.” </p>
<p><em>A date?! </em> No way. </p>
<p>“Isn’t there anything else I can do?” </p>
<p>Liberty shakes her head. “You owe me.” </p>
<p>J.T. sighs. He’s trapped and has no choice but to comply. “Fine. But it’s not a date.” </p>
<p>“<em>I</em> determine that, Yorke,” Liberty chuckles, blowing him a kiss. </p>
<p>So much for passing English...</p>
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